Dare to Disrupt: Alvin Kean Wong

These 10 creatives have rocked the boat, challenged expectations, and shaken up the system. Take a peek into the daily lives of these disruptors and what drives them

The combined strength of Alvin Kean Wong’s (@alvinkeanwong) exploratory eye and knack for portraiture makes for stunning fashion photography. In the March issue, he turned his lens on our cover girl Kristina Bazan, and puts her in focus against the cool urbanscapes of Los Angeles.

I grew up surrounded by girls. My mother and sisters would buy magazines and, at a young age, I found the fashion pictures very interesting. I came to New York 10 years ago trying to figure out what to do with my life and my first job was a photo intern scanning old film for a photographer. He brought me on set to a big fashion shoot one day and the excitement drew me in.

In Singapore, only the big boys are shooting. In between, there aren’t many jobs to survive with. In New York, there are so many levels. The big boys will be shooting campaigns, the middle level can still do look books and the juniors can do social images or still lifes. There’s something for everyone here, you just have to be willing to work hard.

As a creative, if you don’t make money you will hate your work and get burned out. Survival is the key to making good work.

I’ll be an Uber driver if my career in photography goes down the drain (laughs). But really – lighting and photography are the only things I know. Unlike other guys who have a second career or back up plan, this is the only thing I know.

I don’t like to be constrain myself to a style or lighting formula.

My strength is portraiture and I love photographing people. It’s the hardest because everyone has an ego and expectations. Once you make them comfortable and let them just have fun with the camera, you get the best moments – and moments are the most important thing in portraiture.

We are at the most exciting generation of fashion photographers. Photographers and brands are breaking boundaries to create exciting and interesting things. I like working with young designers, stylists and models. They have the freshest visions because they’re unspoiled by commercialism and unafraid to be creative and weird.

Get to know our pick of ten rule-breaking creatives in the March 2017 issue of L'Officiel Singapore.